Lincolnwood Beauty Plan Beastly For Some Shops

A mail carrier first told Teresa Armendariz about plans Lincolnwood has to bulldoze the building where she leases space for her store, Party Favors Plus.

That came as news to her. So she started asking questions.

Her landlord insisted that the 10,000-square-foot building at West Touhy and Crawford Avenues was not for sale. And she said village officials gave her no information when she asked about it five months ago.

Now, after months of failed negotiations with the property owner, the village is threatening to condemn the property, citing powers of eminent domain.

A parking lot would be built there in the name of municipal beautification.

Armendariz, who has been negotiating a new lease, is furious with her landlord and the village over the likelihood she will be forced to relocate.

"I've been lied to," said Armendariz, who says she's put $500,000 into her business over the last four years. "I've been told, `Nothing is going to happen. Nothing is going to happen.' I want some help to move and re-advertise my business because I can't afford it. I put my house, my car, my retirement fund into it. I have everything in the store."

Armendariz and other business owners in the building feel they are caught in the middle of a bureaucratic mess. As one branch of government works to demolish the plain one-story, brown brick building at 3928-3938 W. Touhy Ave., another branch continues to issue permits to develop the property. At least one building tenant has been allowed to renovate space for a restaurant, which has not opened.

Village officials acknowledge it might appear odd that they would approve construction permits for a building they plan to tear down. But they said they have been upfront about plans to beautify the area at the West Touhy-Crawford intersection, and those plans hinge on more parking in the area.

The village has obtained an Illinois FIRST grant for $650,000 that would enable it to buy the property.

"I don't know what will happen," said Vladimir Babeshkin, who said the village three weeks ago approved the most recent permit, for electrical work. "It might be tomorrow somebody come and say, `Vladimir, no work.' I put $40,000 in for nothing."

Village officials also said they are obligated to continue granting building permits to tenants because the village does not yet own the property, officials said. The building also houses a photo studio.

"The Village Board authorized condemnation in early or late November, but it hasn't actually pursued eminent domain," said Timothy Clarke, community development director. "Since we haven't come to an agreement, the property owner could say, `Look village, you want the property but you're not coming to us with a price and not allowing us to use the property.' I think it would border on an illegal action [to deny building permits]."

Village officials have requested that the state legislature approve a "quick-take" of the land to speed the condemnation process. They have not received a response yet.

Lazarus Nodarse, one of several partners who owns the land, said he plans to fight the village in court. He continues to post a "For Rent" sign in a vacant space in the building and said he has notified tenants that he does not wish to sell.

Nodarse said angry tenants should understand that he's in business too. "The tenants know what's going on," he said. "As an owner of a property, you can buy and sell whenever you want to do it. We weren't considering to sell. We were listening to offers. We do this everyday in our business. We're in the real estate market."

Village Administrator Bob Bocwinski said a representative for the property owners asked the village to pursue condemnation.

"By so doing, they would have some tax advantages," he said. "If [the property owners] extended their leases, that becomes [the property owners'] problem because they knew what was going on here. It helps them show a steady stream of income. Our concern is they may have gone in and negotiated new leases, which may artificially inflate what they think is a market price."

Bocwinski said the village would likely offer to help relocate affected businesses. But any financial agreements will have to be decided by a judge during the condemnation proceedings, he said.

The building was rebuilt, retaining only the brown brick facade, after a fire in 1997. A property manager said nothing is structurally wrong with the building, but the village sees it as being in the way of development and its demolition will be for the greater good of the community.

The village's plans to beautify the corner also were born in 1997 and stem from a report commissioned that year to look for ways to strengthen economic development. The plan recommends numerous streetscape improvements, such as a landscaped median.

The plan also calls for adding curbs along Touhy where none exist now. Cars often pull up to the roadside to park, causing a hazardous situation, Clarke said.

The new curb will help define where the street ends and private property begins but will eliminate parking along the road.

A median added to the four-lane road will help pedestrians by creating a "safe harbor" halfway across the street, Clarke said.

Bocwinski said "the feeling was we wanted not to do just a face-lift but improve economic conditions. There is a lot of conflicting signage and architecture there."

The entire project is expected to cost $3 million to $4 million, he said.

Before work on a landscaped median and other projects can take place, though, the village must improve West Touhy to bring it up to state code. To do so, the village needs more parking. Thus the need to raze the building, officials say.

Nodarse said he sympathizes with tenants but that he's fighting the same battle.

"We all want compensation," he said. "The best compensation we can get right now is they leave us where we're at."